#19: 3 Things You Should Do Instead of Going to Film School | Brandon Mair

Brandon Mair is a world-class videographer.

In today's episode, we have Boise native Brandon Mair (aka @basicbrando) on the podcast to share his decade-long journey of becoming a full-time traveling videographer.

Starting with a dinosaur of a Nikon camera and a computer that could hardly handle video editing software, Brandon leaned into his passion for storytelling at the beginning of high school and began capturing videos of him and his friends gaming, skiing, and everything in between.

His journey took him from creating content for fun and for high school courses to traveling the world with the biggest names in EDM and in the automotive scene.

Brandon's story is an inspiring arc for anyone pursuing a creative career, and is a reminder to stay consistent through the difficult chapters where your passion hasn't yet turned into a full-time profession.

Key Moments & Takeaways:
- a senior video that almost got his entire high school class barred from graduation
- getting "good" through thousands of hours of unpaid work
- overcoming the "cringe" phase
- landing his first paid gigs
- why being authentic is your most important skillset
- learning to ask for a seat at the table
- overcoming imposter syndrome in rooms of elite creatives
- keeping your creative spark alive with passion projects

If you like this episode, show Brandon some love in the comments and tell him thanks for sharing his story!

Thanks for listening.

Be Where Your Feet Are,
- Drew

Find Brandon Mair:
Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/basicbrando/
TikTok → https://www.tiktok.com/@basicbrando
YouTube →https://www.youtube.com/ ⁨@BasicMedia⁩

Find Pressed for Presence:
Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/pressedforpresence/
TikTok → https://www.tiktok.com/@pressedforpresence
YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/ ⁨@pressedforpresence⁩
Spotify → https://open.spotify.com/show/2vYm3CwL8P94qHEtASVGX7?si=4721a40484224c46

Find Drew Korf:
Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/drewkorf/
TikTok → https://www.tiktok.com/@drew.korf/

Show Chapters
00:00 First Steps in Video Editing
04:12 Picking up a Camera
08:56 High School Broadcasting
18:12 Senior Year Video
29:15 Transitioning After School
38:02 Discovering Self-Worth and Pricing
38:23 Mentorship & Networking
41:37 Entering the Car Industry
42:45 Landing the First Paid Gigs
49:22 Transition to Music Industry
52:58 Navigating COVID
56:36 Shooting for Kai Wachi
01:05:41 Imposter Syndrome
01:09:45 Balancing Travel and Personal Life
01:17:01 Building New Friendships in the Industry
01:20:25 Navigating Social Media
01:21:07 Advice for Newcomers
01:23:15 Balancing Trends and Originality
01:27:24 Avoiding Burnout
01:29:00 The Importance of Side Hobbies
01:39:01 Iconic Moments and Viral Videos
01:46:34 Future Goals
01:53:21 Inspiring the Next Generation of Creatives